With so much happening at RTPI and all of the active conservation and education work we are completing this spring and summer in our local area we decided that our own President and Executive Director Dr. Twan Leenders should be our May speaker. Please join us on Wednesday, May 21 at 7:00PM at RTPI for this free and educational event.
Twan is a biologist from The Netherlands interested in animal ecology and conservation management. For more than twenty years his work with birds, mammals, plants and especially tropical amphibians and reptiles has taken him to various places on the planet. As a former researcher at Yale University’s Peabody Museum and other institutions he participated in many international expeditions that helped gather data to better understand and protect biologically important areas and their unique species and habitats. Before coming to Western New York, Twan taught biology at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT, and went back into the ‘trenches’ of hands-on conservation research and education while leading the Science and Conservation Office of the Connecticut Audubon Society. As President of the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History, he now applies his experience to our region and develops new conservation research and education initiatives that aim to spark increased interest in the area’s exceptional natural assets while providing economic incentives to promote good environmental stewardship.
After all of that time spent working in some very exotic parts of our planet Twan has recently arrived in Western New York. Find out what our region looks like through the eyes of a newcomer and learn about the unique plants, animals and habitats that are hiding in plain sight in Western New York and adjacent Pennsylvania. Our region harbors an impressive diversity of unusual animals and plants and it is important to get to know them better. You will hear about the initiatives that are being developed at RTPI to engage more people in environmental outreach and stewardship efforts. You will be amazed at what your backyard has to offer and you will undoubtedly leave this talk energized to get to know your natural neighbors a little better!
Admission to the talk at RTPI is free and open to the public; donations are appreciated. For more information please contact us at 716-665-2473.
Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
